Editorial: Marijuana matters much on locals' minds

Fort Morgan Times editorial

Posted:
02/22/2013 11:56:51 AM MST

Marijuana has been much on the minds of local city councils, town boards and law enforcement folks since the passing of Amendment 64.

Just take a look at the Fort Morgan City Council meeting earlier this week, when a significant portion of the session was devoted to discussion of possible local ramifications of the legalization of small amounts of marijuana for private recreational use by adults.

And Brush has already had one business make an unsuccessful attempt to have a smokers' club.

Such clubs are doomed on two fronts, in Brush, at least, under current law.

Amendment 64 excludes public use, which basically means that one cannot walk into a public place such as a bar or lounge and order up a joint or a pipeful of pot.

And if one tries to charge admission to make it a private affair, Brush has an ordinance against such things.

Meanwhile, local government bodies are waiting for the state to get its act together on regulations. Not a bad idea, but the locals might not want to wait too long on that.

The folks who are dead set against retail outlets for marijuana might consider the possibility that those might be the lesser of the evils. Envision if you will a proliferation of home grows with careless people hooking up all sorts of daisy-chained extension cords and goodness knows what other fire hazards.

Here's another wrinkle -- ordinances may have to be changed so that it is no longer illegal for someone to possess a pot pipe or for media outlets to accept marijuana-related advertising money.

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And law enforcement agencies might want to rethink zero tolerance for past marijuana use by applicants. Fort Morgan Police Chief Keith Kuretich said his department is hurting for officers and half the candidates have experimented with drugs. It might be better to decide on a case-by-case basis.

Morgan's council is talking about a public engagement campaign on rules and responsibilities, and that's a good idea.

Meanwhile, pot smokers should be considerate of non-smokers, concerning both secondhand smoke and smell.

And all of us need to be more careful than ever on the road -- now we need to worry not just about drunken drivers but stoned drivers, as well.

The views expressed in The Times editorial are independent from the news coverage, offering our opinion and additional commentary on items of public interest. The editor can be reached at editor@fmtimes.com.

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